Starting on a positive note

It’s only a few days into the new year and already it’s been a busy one. We’re heading into our seventh year here at Lackan, a lot of the physical heavy lifting of sorting buildings and structure is done. Over the last years we’ve welcomed a lot of volunteers, visitors, run courses, and hosted guests in Birch Cottage and the Truck. Now it’s time to start putting all of that together at last. Something we increasingly realised is that whatever the future may hold, community will be more vital than ever, and our events this year aim to try and bring people together, both locally and from all over Ireland.

It’s really satisfying to have people coming to stay in the cottage who are also participating on a course while they are here, and to have had such an overwhelming response to events such as the Unconference in June. There we hope to bring together not only an interesting range of speakers, but to give attendees the opportunity to get together, share meals, and ideas. Food is such a great way to unite people, and our Big Lunch is also a chance for everyone to sit down and celebrate local produce and good company.

It’s so encouraging to see our wider network coming together to offer the most amazing opportunities right across Ireland this year, there is a Permaculture Gathering in the north in August, which holds so many possibilities, and at a time when life seems quite uncertain, there is a real air of positivity and the feeling that people are rising to the challenges we face.